1 Inspirational Movie for Every NBA Playoff Team

The Western Conference Finals are all set with the San Antonio Spurs facing off against the Oklahoma City Thunder starting this Sunday, and the Eastern Conference is just a hair away from getting there, as the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics are each one win away from the Eastern Conference Finals.

So, with fewer games on television and each team looking to fill time between each of these games, I think it's time for them to fire up the DVD player and look for some inspiration in movies.

With all of the stress that is surely pumping through their veins at this point, it's going to be helpful for them to settle down and shut down their brains for a few hours with a nice, inspirational flick to keep them motivated.

However, we don't want each team watching the same movie—they need movies picked specifically for their situation, each one being unique in its own right. 

So, to save the coaches a little time in picking out a movie for the plane ride to their next destination, I've decided to go ahead and do that for each team.

Mild to severe spoilers ahead. If you don't want to see how these movies that have been out for years play out, then go watch them first.

Indiana Pacers: We Are Marshall

Why This Movie? Because the journey is the destination, man.

Nobody on Indiana has died in a plane crash, Frank Vogel doesn't have the Southern charm and good looks of Matthew McConaughey and they aren't facing as tough a battle as Marshall did back in 1971, but this movie will surely put things in perspective for the Indiana Pacers.

With their team down three games to two to what seems to be the sure-fire Eastern Conference champion, Indiana is looking at an uphill climb, and they're going to need to really buckle down if they want to end up on top.

However, even if they don't come out of this series with a win, the important things to remember are to always improve going forward and to be proud of your accomplishments.

This team has put up a great battle so far. Sure, they got blown out last night in Miami, but how many people expected them to be in a position to push this to a seventh game?

We Are Marshall will teach them to appreciate what they've done, appreciate each other, appreciate their fans and appreciate the journey they've taken to get here. And, at the end of the day if they don't end up taking down Goliath, it'll just make them that much more motivated for next season.

Boston Celtics: The Rookie

Why This Movie: Age means nothing if you've got the skill, heart and determination.

It seems like this year's Boston Celtics are more than a bit like Dennis Quaid's character in The Rookie, while the entire city of Boston has played the role of his wife.

The Celtics seemed to have accepted their fate early on in the season as a dysfunctional version of the Dallas Mavericks in the Eastern Conference, just waiting until next year to see what their future held, accepting the fact that this year probably wasn't the year.

However, once things started to really get rolling, they really started to gain confidence and ended up looking like a legitimate title threat.

At this point, the team has thrown age out the window. Kevin Garnett is playing as well as he has in four years, Paul Pierce is taking and making more big shots than anyone in the playoffs, Rajon Rondo is content in his role and not causing trouble and the rest of the team is rallying around each other and falling into place.

All the while, most of the sports world looked at them and saw an interesting story but still a team that looked like they'd be a long shot for a title—but not their fans. The people of Boston seemed to have been behind this team as soon as they shook off that "woe is me" feeling they had about them for the first few weeks and haven't stopped supporting them since.

Philadelphia 76ers: Rudy

Why This Movie? Because it's freaking Rudy.

There isn't a bigger underdog left in the NBA at this point, and the Philadelphia 76ers know that.

At this point, they're Rudy when he's on Notre Dame, getting used as little more than a tackling dummy by the rest of the team. They've done their best to overcome the hardest part of getting where they are, and that is actually getting into the playoffs and getting past the first round, which was the Chicago Bulls.

At the end of the day, they're probably not going to end up hoisting a trophy in about a month, but they're going to give it their all and know that they left it all out on the court, which in some cases is more than anyone can ask for.

Miami Heat: The Right Stuff

Why This Movie? Ignore the doubters, live how you want to live and play how you want to play.

This is the only non-sports movie that made the list, but if you haven't seen The Right Stuff, it's a movie that I would suggest to anyone. Oh, and the book, the book is pretty radical as well.

The Right Stuff is the story of the first astronauts and their attempt to help the U.S. catch up with the Russians, while being totally and completely badass.

The movie is about a group of guys who are more or less strung together willy-nilly with no other goal but to do what they set out to do, no matter the dangers (everyone who had attempted to break the sound barrier before had died trying to do so). After becoming the first man to break the sound barrier (with broken ribs, no less) Chuck Yeager and a few of his buddies are selected to be the first American astronauts.

Their attempt to get into space is little more than strapping them into unreliable rockets and shooting them into space, which...well, go watch the movie for yourself.

The only thing for the Heat to remember is that they aren't playing basketball to please the media or to convert the people who vehemently hate them; they're playing for themselves and the fans they have.

Oklahoma City Thunder: The Mighty Ducks

Why This Movie? Teamwork. Above anything else, teamwork.

The Oklahoma City Thunder may be put together a bit better than the guys in The Mighty Ducks, but that doesn't mean they can't learn something from the babbling bunch of kids.

Emilio Estevez is sentenced to coach this rag-tag (an adjective that the early '90s loved) bunch of kids who happen to be the worst team in a peewee hockey league, the same one that Estevez once played in.

The team is terrible, but that doesn't mean they can't make it to the championship game. Through trust, hard work and teamwork above anything else, Estevez is able to coach his team to a championship.

That, above anything else at this point, is what the Thunder need to do: trust each other and realize that they'll all be working toward the same goal.

San Antonio Spurs: Million Dollar Baby

Why This Movie? Be relentless.

The Spurs aren't exactly the mirror image of the lower-class waitress that Hilary Swank played in Million Dollar Baby, but they both have the same goal: to be the best at what they're trying to do.

Also, as the Spurs may not be the exact replica of Swank, Gregg Popovich sure as hell is quite a bit like Frankie Dunn, Clint Eastwood's character in the movie.

What kind of inspiration can the Spurs get from this movie? Well, with all of the time they've got between games and the "problem" of not being challenged save for one game thus far in the playoffs, it's going to inspire them to continue to push the pedal to the floor and never let up.

They're going to end up getting punched in the face at some point, and they're going to need to just roll right through it and punch back harder. Do that and it seems like this team can't be beaten.

That, plus the strangely satisfying ending will teach them to savor the moments of glory, as they can be fleeting, which should inspire them to go for as much glory as possible, which would end with them hoisting a trophy in June.

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